Wild Sage and Butterfly

Le Moyne de Morgues, Jacques, 1533?-1588 · [ca. 1580]

Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues, a French artist living in Elizabethan England, specialized in naturalistic florilegia. While living in Blackfriars, London during the 16th century, Le Moyne painted dozens of plants and animals native to English gardens; however, his work remained largely undiscovered until the 20th century. These meticulous recreations of Le Moyne's watercolor and gouache pieces highlight the balance between science and art during the sixteenth century. "Wild Sage and Butterfly", a recreation of the watercolor and gouache piece painted by Jacques Le Moyne c. 1580, details textured flora and colorful fauna in a sweeping composition. Curving wild sage arcs across the page, activating the entire space. Miniscule hatch marks add texture to the sage's inner stem. The leaves, though textually underdeveloped, include variations in tone that describe volume. Gradients in the pink of the sage flowers provide dimensionality. Alongside the sage plant, Le Moyne accurately depicts the underside of a Red Admiral butterfly, presumably from life. Though "Wild Sage and Butterfly" was created at the request of a wealthy English patron, Le Moyne's fascination for butterflies can be seen throughout his work, including "Sweet Violet and Red Admiral Butterfly" in the Victoria and Albert Museum.